Stanford vs. USC for Trip To Series

It's the USC-Stanford baseball Super Regional this weekend at Sunken Diamond, a best-of-three series that probably should not be taking place this early in the NCAA playoffs, although it's intriguing that it is.

"We finished first and second in the same conference, and ideally you try to keep us apart as long as you can," said Stanford coach Mark Marquess. "In basketball (in the NCAA Tournament), we wouldn't be facing a team in the same conference so soon. So I don't like that fact."

The USC-Stanford series is one of eight Super Regional series across the country, with the winners of those eight Super Regionals advancing to the College World Series, which begins next Friday in Omaha. This matchup makes it impossible for both third-ranked Stanford and No. 10 USC to reach the CWS.

Last year, two Pac-10 teams, USC and Arizona State, played in the NCAA championship game. That won't happen this year,

because USC and Stanford are the only Pac-10 teams left, and one of them will be eliminated by Sunday.

"But," admitted Marquess, "as far as fan interest, this is great."

It is the best college matchup possible in the Bay Area. Their three-game series at Stanford in mid-April attracted 8,126 fans, easily a Stanford record for a three- game series. And attendance this weekend is sure to exceed 9,000 if the series goes the full three games.

It's easy to see why. Stanford and USC have been the top two finishers in the conference four of the past five years, the only exception being 1997, when Stanford was first and the Trojans third. And they are the only two conference schools to have reached the NCAA playoffs each of the past six seasons.

Stanford has won the conference division title the last three years in a row, but USC won the national title last year. Stanford has won 19 of its past 20 games in this season of overachievement, but USC, ranked No. 1 in preseason, is hot, too, after rebounding from a 4-11 start.

The teams split six regular-season games this year and they are 12-12 against each other over the past four years.

They have played each other 323 times over the years. Tonight will be the first time USC and Stanford have met in an NCAA playoff game.

"Yeah, I guess that's right," said Marquess, stunned by the news.

And it will be played at Stanford, because Stanford was the Pac-10 champ, because Stanford is the higher tournament seed, and because Stanford draws bigger crowds than USC. The latter may be the biggest factor, because Cal State- Fullerton, the third overall seed in the tournament, is forced to play its Super Regional series at Ohio State, a decision that did not thrill the Titan coaches. (Incidentally, the USC-Stanford winner will play the Ohio State-Fullerton winner in their first game of the CWS.)

In the Stanford-USC series, home field may not mean much. Or it may mean a lot, depending how one's manipulates the statistics.

The Trojans are just 12-14 on the road this season, and Stanford has won 22 of its last 24 home games. But the only two Stanford home losses in that stretch came against USC, which won two of three games in the series at Stanford. Plus, USC won those two games without catcher Eric Munson, the No. 3 overall pick in Wednesday's major-league draft who was out with a broken hand. He is back now, and hitting well.

But Munson was playing when the teams met for a three-game series at USC back in February, and the Cardinal limited Munson's impact while winning two of three in Los Angeles.

The final, regular-season matchup between the two resulted in a wild, 17-15 USC victory. Such a slugfest is unlikely tonight, with each team starting its ace: Stanford sophomore Jason Young, who came from nowhere to become the staff leader, and USC left-hander Barry Zito, who was not even a USC student six months ago.

Zito is 12-2, has won 11 straight decisions and was the No. 9 overall pick in Wednesday's draft. Last fall, he was taking courses at Grossmont College and did not arrive at USC until January.

Zito has traveled as much as major- league free agents. He began at UC Santa Barbara, moved to Pierce (Junior) College last year, then made a stop at Grossmont before coming to USC. He'll be a pro soon.

He was the Pac-10 pitcher of the year and struck out 146 batters in 104 2/3 innings. The other all-conference pitcher was Young, who did not start a single game last season, but has all but two of Stanford's complete games this season.